Dr. Theanne Schiros [Dept. of Science & Mathematics, Fashion Institute of Technology, USA]

Title: Atomistic tuning of electronic structure in 2-D nanomaterials: Insights from x-ray spectroscopy and DFT

Time: 2:00 - 3:00 PM, Tuesday, August 9, 2016

Place: Auditorium Room 410, HPSTAR (Shanghai)

Host: Dr. Tsu-Chien Weng

Abstract:

Graphene and transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are 2D van der Waals (vdW) materials that have recently emerged with the potential to displace conventional silicon technology for electronic and opto-electronic applications. The unique mechanical, electronic and optoelectronic properties of 2D materials differ greatly from their bulk counterparts and have shown promise for a wide range of device applications, including flexible, mechanically strong electronics such as transistors, memories, logic circuits, light-emitters and photodetectors, as well as potential applications in photovoltaics, and photocatalysts for the production of hydrogen as a clean energy carrier. The fabrication of layered 2D heterostructures also opens up the potential for new science and applications based on the interactions taking place at the interface.

While 2D nanomaterials offer exciting building blocks for devices with a wide range of applications, much remains to be understood about the local chemical and electronic properties when taken to the monolayer limit, and how these properties may be tuned by chemical and contact  doping. Here, a complementary suite of x-ray spectroscopy techniques supported by density functional theory, are used to correlate atomistic details of local bond environment with electronic properties and work function in 2-D nanomaterials. This exploration includes pristine and chemically doped 2D materials in the monolayer limit as well as in 2D heterostructures with an eye on next generation electronic devices with higher performance and lower energy consumption.

Biography of the Speaker:

Theanne Schiros, PhD, is an assistant professor at FIT, where she teaches physics, chemistry, and sustainability courses. She is a faculty advisor for the Columbia University Maker Space and Wearable Technology competition and for the winning (FIT) team (bioesters.com), of the National Biodesign Challenge at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), guiding students on how to rethink textiles through technology, biology, and sustainable design.l She is also an adjunct research scientist at Columbia University’s Materials Research Science and Engineering Center, as well as the diversity liaison, working collaboratively across the Center for Precision Assembly of Superstratic and Superatomic Solids (PAS) to explore 2D materials for future electronic devices and catalysts for clean energy applications. Schiros is engaged in international sustainability work with organizations such as Engineers without Borders and the Finca Morpho Permaculture collective. She has published in numerous peer-reviewed journals and has been the recipient of multiple grants to support her work, including the NYSERDA Fellowship, the Columbia University EFRC Fellowship, and the Hunter College Fellowship for Academic Excellence in Teaching.